


We Learn As We Go Along

by Dinohunter5904



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: 'cause victor has no shame, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Fluff, M/M, art major!Yuuri, nudity mention, psychology major!Victor
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-08
Updated: 2017-08-20
Packaged: 2018-10-29 10:25:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,730
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10852047
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dinohunter5904/pseuds/Dinohunter5904
Summary: The crappy college!AU nobody asked for in which Yuuri is an art major, Victor is a psychology major, they are roommates, and everybody learns as they go along.





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! This is my first ever fic that I'm posting so, sorry if it sucks. Constructive criticism is welcomed and encouraged, and I hope you enjoy anyway.

Yuuri stared up at the building in front of him, still in disbelief that he had been talked into his current position. It had been Phichit’s idea to move in with someone else, of course. When Yuuri had said that he didn't understand why he couldn't just room Phichit again, his best friend had just said it was so he could “get out and meet new people, for once.”

He sighed at the thought and simply gripped his suitcase tighter, if that was even possible, before moving through the door of the apartment building. As he walked up the stairs, he tried to wrap his head around just who he’d be rooming with. _There are so many other people on campus he could’ve roomed with. Why me?_ Soon enough, he was at the door to his new apartment. Noticing that the door was ajar, he pushed it open before he could second guess himself and called out “Hello?” into the apartment that seemed to be devoid of human activity aside from the mountains of boxes that filled up the room.

Suddenly, he was on the floor.

And being licked.

“Oh, sorry! Makka, get off of him!” A slightly familiar male voice called out as Yuuri tried half-heartedly to get the huge mass of fur off of him.

Finally, after a few seconds, the body got off him, revealing itself to be a brown, standard poodle. “Sorry about Makkachin. She can be a bit excitable at times. I’m Victor, but you already knew that. It’s nice to meet you properly, Yuuri! E-mail just isn’t the same, right?” The Russian asked, a heart-shaped smile adorning his face.

“Yeah.” Yuuri managed to squeak out.

Victor paused, his smile slightly slipping off his face and starting to look a bit of a mixture between concern and confusion. “Do you need help?” Victor questioned, holding out his hand, causing Yuuri to realize that he was still on the ground.

“No! No, I’m fine.” He stuttered out, scrambling to his feet.

“Okay!” Victor exclaimed, his heart-shaped smile back full force, which seemed to brighten up the room. Was it possible for a smile to provide light? Yuuri would have to ask Phichit if he had any friends in the science department that could answer him. “Do you have any luggage that you need help bringing up?”

“N-no, just a couple of suitcases.”

“Perfect! I’ll just finish up here and you can put your things in your room.” Victor replied happily, clapping his hands together.

Yuuri simply nodded in response before walking out onto the stairway landing where he had set down his things before getting knocked over by Makkachin. After he had grabbed his suitcases and walked back in, he saw that Victor was back to methodically opening boxes and emptying them of their contents before doing whatever he needed to with them. Rinse, dry, repeat. _At least he’s efficient._ Yuuri thought to himself while watching. Noticing that he was staring, he quickly speed-walked down the hallway that he assumed led to the bedrooms as it was the only one. He saw that Victor had appeared to already have claimed one of the rooms, so he moved into the other one, setting down his things.

Sighing, he got to work.

~*~

About an hour later, he stopped and looked around at what he had accomplished. Viewing his sparse belongings, he put his hands on his hips and thought, _Maybe Victor was smart to have brought so much so quickly. It’s gonna be hard to try and sleep on the floor tonight, even with a sleeping bag._ He sighed. _Why did Phichit have to work extra hours today?_

As if hearing his thoughts, Victor burst into the room, surveying Yuuri’s work. “Is this all of your stuff?” He asked, clearly confused by the minimal amount of belongings scattered throughout the room in their temporary places.

“W-well, the friend of mine who promised to help me move has to work late today…” He left out the part where Phichit was the only friend he’d felt comfortable asking to help, and one with a car, at that. If Yuuri had his own car, he probably would’ve just moved in by himself.

Victor put his finger to his lips, appearing to be deep in thought. “That won’t do. Sleeping on the floor certainly can’t be comfortable, or healthy, for that matter.”

Yuuri shrugged. “It’s fine, I’ve got a sleeping ba-”

“I’ve got it!” Victor declared, removing the finger from his lips, his face lighting up like a lightbulb. “You could just sleep with me!”

Yuuri’s eyes widened and he probably would’ve choked on his own saliva if his mouth and throat hadn’t gone so dry. “What!? No!”

Victor seemed to deflate slightly. After a few moments, though, his bright nature was back, albeit seeming to be a bit different, but Yuuri couldn’t put his finger on why. A few more moments and Victor snapped his fingers. “We can just use the truck I rented and move your things today! You can call your friend and tell them that you’re taken care of while I go warm up the truck.” After that, Victor darted out of the room, and presumably down to the truck, faster than a runner after hearing the starting gun shot, a thousand-watt smile on his face and sparkles in his eyes.

Yuuri broke out of his shock to the feeling of something nuzzling his leg. He looked down to see Makkachin standing there and started petting her out of habit while he giggled quietly to himself. _You sure Makkachin is the only one that’s excitable?_ “Like owner, like dog.” He muttered before pulling out his phone and dialing his best friend.

“So, how’s it going with Nikiforov?” The Thai man questioned after picking up on the second ring. Yuuri sometimes thought that Phichit might have gotten his phone surgically attached to him or something.

“It’s fine.” Yuuri replied simply while shrugging, forgetting that the other man couldn’t see him. He felt his face heat up and had to use a majority of his willpower to not hit his head on the wall.

“Oh, come on, Yuuri!” Phichit whined. “Stop being all ‘if I told you, I’d have to kill you’ on me. I want details, man!”

Yuuri laughed at his friend’s antics. “That was a terrible Arnold Schwarzenegger impression.”

Phichit laughed with him. “You get the idea. But seriously, I want the juicy deets, man! They don’t call me ‘Instagram Jesus’ for nothing.”

By then, Yuuri had switched from laughing to face-palming. “That was the single cringiest thing I have ever heard you say. Also, no one calls you ‘Instagram Jesus’”

“Yeah they do! I’ve seen the comments on my posts. Though, I do know you’re more of a Tumblr person, so I doubt you’ve seen those comments.”

Yuuri raised an eyebrow. “Are you insulting my choice of social media platforms?”

“No, but I will say that it’s weird that you call it a ‘social media platform’.” He could practically see the air quotes. “But I digress. Will you tell me if I promise not to post anything about it?” Yuuri knew that his friend would never post anything this personal or something Yuuri wasn't okay with, but the reassurance was nice.

“Fine,” He acquiesced, sighing when he heard a squeal from the other end of the line. “But it’s not like I’ve known him for that long. I’ve only said maybe twenty words to him so far.”

“That’s still better than the five words you said to me when we met. Though, I suppose those twenty words didn't happen to be ‘'Hi, Victor. My name is Yuuri Katsuki and I have an absolutely huge crush on you and your sweet ass.”

Yuuri paused as he held up his hand to count _yep, that’s twenty._ “I feel like I should be offended, but I’m really just impressed that you managed to say exactly twenty words.” Apparently he now lived in an anime because Yuuri could’ve sworn that he actually heard Phichit smirk. Though, Yuuri cut him off before he could say anything as he had suddenly remembered why he had called in the first place. “Oh, by the way, there's a reason I called you.”

Phichit faux gasped, undoubtedly while dramatically clutching his chest, as well. “Katsuki Yuuri, calling me with a purpose? What has this world come to!?”

“Ha ha, very funny, Phichit.” Yuuri chided sarcastically. “I just called to say that you can save the gas money. Victor offered to let me use the truck he’s renting and to help me with my stuff, today.”

“Well that's nice of him,” Phichit said approvingly. “Tell him I say thanks. Also, make sure to stay safe and use protection when doing any ‘vigorous physical activity’. See ya, Yuuri!”

Yuuri stared confusedly at the “Call Ended” screen until his brain finally made sense of the implications in his friend’s words. As soon as he figured it out, he let out a scandalized squeak that sort of sounded like ‘Phichit!’. He had sort of become accustomed to people randomly throwing around innuendoes, you kind of had to be after living in Detroit for five years and being Chris’ friend for a majority of those, but he’d never get used to them being directed at him, especially from his best friend. “Phichit, you little-”

Of course, Victor thought that would be a great time to come back into the room. “Yuuri, are you sure you still want to go- are you okay?” He asked, no doubt having seen Yuuri halfway through his question. Yuuri, who was standing in the middle of a nearly empty room, staring at his phone, probably looking a little shell-shocked.

At Victor’s words, he snapped out of his shock and sighed, having resigned himself to the fact that he’d probably have to endure many more innuendos from his friend during the time he’d be living with the man formerly mentioned. “Yeah, it’s fine. Let’s go.”

At that, Victor’s face lit up for the nth time that day before he skipped all they way down to the truck, leaving a still slightly flustered Yuuri to jog after him.


	2. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know, I'm actually pretty proud of myself for breaking 2,000+ words this chapter, but hey. Also, I tried not to let it show too much, but my Midwestern dialect might've shown through a bit this chapter in the dialogue so, sorry about that (I had to stop myself from having one of them say "real fast" multiple times. Whoops). Still, I hope you guys can enjoy this chapter, no matter the length or possibly poor word choice.

The ride to Phichit and Yuuri's, now previous, flat was mostly silent, aside from Yuuri's occasional sounds of surprise, and maybe even a little fear, as Victor went around corners at a speed that certainly wasn't legal. Even though he would normally enjoy some silence, Yuuri felt slightly unnerved. He hadn't known the man for very long, but Victor was fairly well-known around campus for being very charismatic and extroverted — not that Yuuri would know. It had seemed unusual that Victor was being silent and Yuuri couldn't help but feel that he'd done something wrong.

His thoughts were swiftly cut off by the arrival at their destination. Yuuri quickly jumped out of the truck and walked up to the building, letting muscle memory take over in order to bring him to his old apartment. As he walked, he ran his hand along the wallpaper, a wave of nostalgia washing over him. _I'm gonna miss living here, especially with Phichit._ Yuuri thought while standing in front of the door.

"Ready?" Victor asked simply from behind him, causing Yuuri to jump about five feet in the air.

Wide-eyed, he let out a shuddering breath. "Y-yeah." He stuttered out. _This man is going to give me a heart attack._ He thought while unlocking the door, possibly for the last time. "Alright, let's do this."

~*~

By the time they had loaded all of Yuuri's boxes onto the truck, it was dark and both men were sweaty and panting.

And not in the good way.

"Why-" Victor panted while leaning back, using his arms to relieve the tension in his spine by cracking his back. "do you have so much stuff, and why is it so heavy?"

Yuuri huffed out a small laugh, putting his hands on his knees. "To be fair, I'm an art major who spends most of his time inside. I have a lot of stuff." He said, taking his hands off his knees to shrug before putting them back on. Remembering something suddenly, he started to look around. "Hey, where did you put my succulents?"

At that, Victor perked up a bit. "Oh, I put them up in the, uh, driving area thingy-"

"The cab?" Yuuri asked, raising an eyebrow.

Victor snapped his fingers, his eyes lighting up in recognition. "Yes, the cab! I put them on your seat in the cab." He paused for a second before putting his finger to his lips and narrowing his eyes. "You know, those plants are pretty cute, just like a certain someone I know." _Why does his voice sound lower than normal?_ Yuuri wondered confusedly. When his brain supplied the option of flirting, Yuuri did the mental equivalent of putting his fingers in his ears and saying "la, la, la," over and over again. How that worked, the world may never know, but his internal screaming quieted enough for him to reply normally, so good for him.

"Th-thanks. Yeah, once you get one of them, it's kind of hard to stop. At this point, I have a small collection of them." Yuuri let out a small giggle, reminiscing. "I actually got my first one on a two a.m. run to Walmart. I was supposed to get some snacks for an all-nighter that Phichit and I were pulling and he looked so confused when I brought back something other than food and coffee. His hamsters seemed alright with them, though, so he was alright with them. I think he himself probably grew fond of them, as well." When Yuuri looked back at him, Victor was smiling. He was giving Yuuri a smile that was so soft and genuine and warm that Yuuri wished he could see that smile forever. If he had gone blind right then and there, he wouldn't have minded that smile being that last thing he saw. He shook his head to get rid of his previous thoughts and looked back out the window.

"Phichit," Victor started, breaking the short, comfortable silence. "is that the person who was going to help you move tomorrow?"

"Yeah," Yuuri paused before adding "I've been rooming with him for the last few years."

Victor frowned slightly, cocking his head like a dog would do if it were confused. "Why did you decide to move out?"

Yuuri shrugged. "Phichit suggested it. He said it was so I could get out and meet new people, whatever that means."

"Perhaps to find new friends, or a lover." Victor supplied, but it sounded more like a question than a statement.

"M-maybe the first one..." Yuuri trailed off while averting his gaze, his face heating up to the point where it probably felt like he was in Arizona rather than Michigan. "W-we should probably get going."

"Okay." Victor replied coolly, shrugging.

Getting into the passenger side, Yuuri wrapped his arms around his succulents and put them on his lap in order to keep them from falling over. For a few minutes, they sat in a comfortable silence, only permeated by the sounds of traffic around them. Then, Victor said "For people who are moving in together, we don't really know that much about each other. To fix that, I think we should play a game of twenty questions; I ask you twenty questions and you ask me twenty questions!"

"Uh, I don't think that's how twenty questions works, or twenty one questions either, for that matter, but if we are going to play like that, can we at least lower the amount of questions each to five?"

Victor seemed slightly disappointed, but he shrugged anyway. "Sure. Okay, first question, why did you decide to become an art major?"

"Oh." Yuuri responded simply, stunned by the fact that Victor had remembered that he had mentioned his major. "I've always liked art and it just seemed like the best option. What's your major?"

"Psychology, but linguistics was on the table as well. What are some of your hobbies?"

Yuuri spent a second searching his memory. "I don't really have many outside of art. Though, I do like to read, spend a lot of time on Tumblr, dance, and that's pretty much it." He replied, drawing out the 'and' as he thought for any others to tell Victor. After thinking of his next question, he let out a small laugh. "Alright, this next one is for my friend. What do you think of memes?"

Victor paused, probably sort of shocked, before snorting. He actually _snorted._ "Some of them are pretty funny, some of them are pretty stupid; it just depends. What kind of dance do you like to do?"

Yuuri shrugged. "Anything, really, since my old ballet teacher was always making me try new kinds of dance. Still, ballet holds a special place in my heart. Do you have anything you like to do in your spare time?"

"Not really." Victor replied, swerving around car after car, slightly ruining the previously calm atmosphere. "My free time is mostly spent scrolling through my social media while cuddling with Makka. Sometimes I go out with my friends, but not often. Alright, what's your favourite book?"

Yuuri turned to face Victor while clutching his precious plants a little tighter, completely serious. "One does not simply ask someone what their favourite book is."

Victor chuckled. "I didn't know you liked reading so much."

"My books are one of the main reasons why those boxes are so heavy. Also, asking me what book is my favourite is like asking me to choose which one of my children is my favourite. I just can't choose."

Victor laughed again while raising his hands in surrender, which was slightly terrifying due to the fact that he was driving, but he quickly put his hands back on the steering wheel. "Okay. Next question?"

"O-oh, right! Um, what's your favourite colour?"

"Probably gold, or brown." Victor said, winking at Yuuri, causing the latter man to flush red. "I'm guessing yours is blue, due to the sheer amount of blue stuff you have."

"What can I say," Yuuri shrugged. "I like blue."

"And there's nothing wrong with that. Anyway, do you have any minors?"

"Music and dance, not really too surprising. Okay, final question, why did you choose psychology?"

Victor hummed, thinking. "I've always liked being able to read people and to know what they're thinking, but I'd be lying if I told you that it was a well thought out decision. It was sort of a coin toss and I could be just as easily chosen linguistics or even dance. It was never really my thing, but when I was younger, I used to be pretty good at figure skating, so that was also on the table." Yuuri's breath hitched at that and he had to force himself to calm down.

"Why'd you stop?" Yuuri questioned, his curiosity overpowering his previous emotions.

"My traditional, Russian parents didn't think it was a masculine enough sport so they prevented me from continuing, even when I became relatively successful. You know, it's too bad; I really liked skating. I actually still skate sometimes if I come across a rink and have some free time."

Yuuri swallowed, his eyes downcast. "I bet you were great." _Greater than me, at least._ "Well, I guess that's over now. Just in time, too." Yuuri commented as their new apartment building came into view.

"Wha- really?" Victor asked incredulously, surprised. "Oh, I guess so." He couldn't be sure, but Yuuri thought that he might've heard Victor mumble, _'Damn, I had more questions, too.'_

"Okay, so, how about we just being up my mattress tonight and grab the rest of my stuff tomorrow?"

"Sure!" Victor agreed while jumping out of the driver's seat. Yuuri followed his actions and rounded the back of the truck just in time to see Victor opening it up and jumping in. Yuuri then jumped in after Victor and grabbed one end of his mattress. Victor then grabbed the other end before asking, "Ready?" To which Yuuri nodded in response. "Alright, on the count of three. One, two, three."

Eventually, after a few bumps, bruises, and lots of swearing, they finally managed to get the mattress into Yuuri's new room. As soon as they set it down, Yuuri flopped down onto said mattress and let out a relieved sigh before saying, "I think this is what pure ecstasy feels like. They really need to make those stairwell landings bigger."

"I agree with you there, on both fronts." Victor laughed quietly, a tired smile adorning his face. Suddenly, an idea popped into his head. "One second, I'll be right back."

"Mmkay." Yuuri muttered, his limbs spread out like a starfish while face down on the box spring. _I bet I know who's not gonna be moving for the next fourteen hours. ___

__All of the sudden, he felt the weight of a warm blanket falling onto him. He let his curiosity win out over his exhaustion and rolled over to see Victor holding two pillows. "I know it's August, in Detroit, but I thought they might be comforting to have." He said, holding out the two pillows, simultaneously answering Yuuri's unasked question._ _

__"It's fine, you don't have to give me those-"_ _

__"Well, I want to. Plus, I have extras, so go ahead and take them." Victor replied, his voice filled with a renewed confidence._ _

__Hesitantly, Yuuri took the pillows. "Thank you."_ _

__Victor smiled. "It's no problem. I'll see you in the morning, Yuuri. Good night." He said while winking and waving goodbye before closing the door._ _

__"See you." Yuuri muttered in response. After a few moments, and he was sure that Victor was out of earshot, he groaned and fell back onto the mattress, reverting back to the starfish position. Exhaustion retaking him, he vaguely registered the thought that Phichit would probably want to check in with him in the morning to see how the move was going, but was too tired to process it more. Sleep was the only thing that mattered to Yuuri at the moment._ _

__Unfortunately, it was also the thing that evaded him for the next several hours._ _


	3. Chapter Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry that I've been gone for so long and that this is the chapter I come back with. To my friends that are reading this who haven't seen YOI (you know who you are), don't judge me, judge the characters. In any case, I hope you guys enjoy!

Yuuri groaned as the upbeat tune of his alarm rang throughout the room, waking him up from a dream that, as far as he could tell, was pretty enjoyable. Reluctantly rolling over, he began to lazily wipe his arm along the mattress as the weak morning rays of sun spilled through the plain white curtains of his bedroom and onto his face. Once he finally managed to find his phone, he turned off the alarm and sighed, before flipping onto his back and staring at the ceiling. For a while, he simply laid there and lost track of time as he mentally prepared himself for the day ahead of him. Once he started hearing the birds outside his window chirping, he finally dragged himself out of bed into the surprisingly cool air of his bedroom. Yuuri crouched over the overnight bag he had brought and grabbed the workout clothes he had packed, among other things, and headed to the bathroom.

After attempting to turn on the unfamiliar shower for about five minutes and trying to stay awake under the comfortingly hot water for another ten, he dried off and threw on his clothes before heading back to his room. Then, once he put his phone, keys, and earbuds in his pockets, he was ready to go on his morning run.

Just as he was about to walk out the front door, he heard a sleepy voice from behind him quietly murmur “What are you doing?”

Turning around, Yuuri started to reply. “Oh, I was just going out for-” _Oh my god._ Standing in front of him was a half-conscious Victor Nikiforov who was rubbing at his eyes with his left hand, his silver fringe pouring through his fingers. That, however, was not (entirely) the problem. The problem was that said Victor Nikiforov very, very naked. “V-Victor! Put some clothes on, please!” Yuuri screeched, blushing furiously and covering his eyes.

Victor stopped rubbing his eyes and cocked his head in confusion before Yuuri’s words finally seemed to sink in, after which he proceeded to look down at himself as if to confirm that he did, indeed, have no clothes on. Looking back up at Yuuri, he had an apologetic look on his face. “Sorry, I forgot to mention that I sleep in the nude. I’ll be right back.” He smiled, still looking apologetic, and left the room, presumably to put some clothes on.

After a few moments, Yuuri broke out of his shock and buried his extremely warm face in his hands and screamed internally while groaning out loud. _Well, that went_ great, _didn't it?_ He thought sarcastically.

Soon enough, Victor finally walked back in, this time fully clothed in a t-shirt and jeans. “Again, sorry about that. I don't usually wake up at six-thirty, so I’m still pretty tired.”

Yuuri winced slightly in sympathy. “Sorry about that.”

Victor simply waved it off. “It’s fine. Now, I’d just appreciate some coffee and for you to answer my question.”

“O-oh, right. I was just heading out for my morning run, but it’ll probably end up being more of a walk since I still have to plan a route and stuff.” Yuuri responded, putting his hands in his pockets and fiddling with the things he had put in there earlier; mainly his keys.

“Well, I suppose I might as well come with you. It might help to me wake up, and we could also grab some coffee, da?”

“Uh, sure,”

“Perfect!” Victor replied excitedly, clapping his hands together. _Does he always do that?_ Yuuri wondered. “Since we’re going out, I’m gonna go change. I’ll be right back.” A couple minutes of Yuuri scrolling through his Tumblr dash later, Victor walked back in wearing a simple t-shirt and shorts and holding a sweater. “Okay, let’s go!” Victor exclaimed as he finished tying the aforementioned sweater around his waist. _Why does he even need that? The temperature is in the mid-thirties!_ Before Yuuri could ask just that, Victor had already unlocked the door and was waiting out in the hallway. Not wanting to make the other man wait too long, Yuuri hurriedly walked out to meet him and closed the door behind him.

~*~

“So, where are we going to be walking to, Yuuri?” Victor inquired cheerfully, practically skipping down the sidewalk. Yuuri could easily imagine him swinging his arms like a five-year-old, too.

“Well, like I mentioned earlier, I still need to plan a new route and stuff, so we can just kind of go wherever. Though, we could probably look for a coffee shop since you said that you wanted some coffee.” _Not that you really need it._ Yuuri added mentally, watching as Victor continued to have as much energy as a kid on a sugar high. _Definitely a morning person._ He noted.

Victor hummed in acknowledgment, mellowing out a little and starting to walk at a normal pace. Then, he said, “I think there’s a café down the street, if I remember correctly. I checked out the area a bit and I think that it was one of the reasons why I liked the location in the first place.” _That’s smart. I probably should’ve thought of doing that._ Yuuri thought, making a mental note to do that the next time he moved. His thoughts were cut off once he noticed that Victor had been giving him a playful smile. “Wanna race me there?”

“Uh, I don't really know where it is…” Yuuri pointed out.

“I’m almost sure that it’s just down two blocks. Please, Yuuri.” Victor whined, putting on the most adorable — yet unnecessary, as Yuuri had already made up his mind — puppy eyes that he had ever seen. Still, he snorted at the ridiculousness of the situation.

“Sure,” Yuuri said, now returning Victor’s playful smile, before bending his knees and leaning over in order to get into a decent starting position.

“One, two, three, go!” The two men raced all the way to the café, side-eyeing each other competitively the whole way there. Yuuri stopped in front of the entrance a few seconds before Victor and let out a small victory “whoop” through his deep breaths while grinning victoriously. Both were still breathing heavily when Victor walked over to the door and held it open for Yuuri, signalling for him to go in first as the “Open” sign bounced against the glass. “Après vous.”

“Thanks.” Yuuri replied, making a mental note to ask Victor about the language, which he assumed to be French from the sound, later. He then walked into the building, Victor quickly following.

As they stood in line to order, Yuuri thought about how surprised he had been when he noticed how well Victor could keep up with him. Well, maybe not surprised, per se, as Victor was certainly anything but unfit, but still a tad unexpected. Before he knew it, both he and Victor were sitting at a small circular table right in front of the store front window, which was only big enough to fit two laptops if they were back to back and someone was really determined.

Sipping his coffee, Yuuri simply faced the window and stared off into space for a little while. Suddenly, Victor leaned forward and asked, “Why did you look so shocked when I mentioned figure skating?” with a serious, yet curious, look on his face.

Yuuri turned to face him and tried to school his face into a neutral expression from his previous shocked one, before firing back, “Why are you so interested in me?”

Victor leaned back and shrugged. “Like I said, it’s nice to know someone you’re gonna live with.”

“Yeah, but some people go without even knowing their roommate’s name.”

“Well, I guess I’m just not one of those people. But, in all seriousness, I am genuinely curious.”

Yuuri sighed and averted his eyes, trying to psych himself up for his answer. “I, uh…” He took a deep breath before turning to face Victor again with a determined look on his face. “I used to be a fan of yours, but I didn't realize that you’re the same person until you mentioned it earlier,” He then started to trail off, losing his previous confidence. “which probably says a lot about my observational skills.” Yuuri finished, averting his eyes and rubbing his hands up and down his thighs in a mixture of embarrassment and nervousness. It may not have been the whole truth, but Yuuri would admit to that when he was ready.

After a few moments of shocked silence, Victor spoke. “To be fair, I quit skating almost ten years ago, now.” Yuuri looked back up at him as Victor let out a small laugh and stared at the table before sighing wistfully. “It’s weird to think about how long it’s been and how much I’ve changed since then. I mean, for one thing, I still had my long hair.” At that, he looked up at the ceiling and took a hand and ran it through his hair, probably remembering what that felt like to have his hair down to his hips.

“You do look a lot more masculine, now.” Yuuri muttered under his breath in agreement.

“That’s true.” Victor responded while looking at the table again, surprising Yuuri, as he hadn't realized he had heard, and appearing to be in his own little world filled with nostalgia and memories.

To let Victor have a moment of peace, Yuuri resigned himself to looking out the window once again, only this time to actually take in the scenery. He groaned inwardly when he saw rain clouds blowing into position over the city, and instead decided to focus on the foliage of the park across the street. He felt the familiar urge to grab a pencil and just start drawing, but as he reached into his pocket and didn't feel one in there among his keys and earbuds, Yuuri realized he hadn't thought to grab a pencil and a sketchbook.

Sighing, he simply grabbed his phone instead and started scrolling through his dashboard. Victor only seemed to snap out of his daze when he started scrolling through the Voltron tag a few minutes later. Victor took a deep breath and leaned back, as if life was being breathed back into him, which wasn't too far from the truth since it was the first time Yuuri had seen him move in minutes and he had even debated calling an ambulance or something.

“Well, I suppose we should get going.” Victor said while smiling softly at Yuuri before jumping out of his chair. Yuuri quickly got out of his chair before they both grabbed their—by then, mostly lukewarm—coffees and started heading towards the exit. _Or entrance depending on your perspective, I suppose._ Though, the way Victor held open the door reminded Yuuri of something he had meant to ask.

“Oh, by the way, Victor?” Yuuri started to ask while walking through the door, causing Victor to hum curiously in acknowledgment. “I’m not trying to be rude or anything but, what was with the French earlier?”

Victor looked a bit like he had been caught off guard by the question before letting out a small breathy laugh and beginning their walk back towards the apartment. Yuuri followed quickly behind him as the café door closed silently. “I’m actually fluent in French, as well as English and Russian.” He responded looking slightly smug. “ My parents traveled a lot because of their jobs and, combined with my old skating career, they wanted me to at least learn English and one other language.”

“Wow.” Yuuri breathed out, impressed.

“At first, I thought it was a little excessive and that English would be sufficient, but knowing French has proven to be useful. I mean, it did start this conversation, didn't it?” Victor gestured to the air between them as if their words were a physical thing floating in front of their faces. “And my best friend speaks French, too, so that’s nice.”

Yuuri nods in agreement. “Cool.”

“Yup.” Victor hums.

They spent the rest of the walk back in a comfortable silence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Après vous - French for "after you"
> 
> I'll cover how I'll handle people speaking in other languages from now on in the notes for the next chapter (mostly because I'm lazy, but also because it's not very relevant to this chapter). Again, I'm really sorry that I haven't posted a new chapter in three months (oh god that's a while), but I've been really busy with travelling and work and I've also been sick for about the past month and a half with different things, so I have excuses. Anyway, hopefully the next chapter won't take nearly as long to come out, and I hope that you guys enjoyed this one in the meantime. See ya!


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